Electric-railway system



(Nd Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. G. RICHTER.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM. I N0. 419,709. Patented Jan. 21, 1890.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 0. RICHTER.

ELEGTRIU RAILWAY SYSTEM.

No. 419,709. Patented Jan. 21. 1890-.

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' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

CHARLES RICHTER, OF CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY.

ELECTRIC-RAILWAY SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 419,709, dated January21, 1890.

Application filed May 4, 1889- Serial No. 309,609. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES RICHTER, of Camden, in the county of Camdenand State of New Jersey, a citizen of the United States, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Electric-Railway Systems, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved electric-railway system which isrun without the use of overhead wires by arranging the conductors in atunnel between the rails; and

the invention consists of an electric railway in which theconducting-wire is arranged in sections along the road and connected atthe end of each section by switches with stationary resistances locatedat uniform distances from each other. One pole of the electromotor onthe car is connected by a trolley or contact-roller with theconducting-wire, while the other pole of the motor is connected by-aconducting-cable with a small contact-wagon which travels in a tunnel ata distance somewhat greater than the length of one section from the car.The conducting-cable can be wound up more or less and the speed of themotor regulated by switching out one or more of the resistances alongthe line and increasing thereby the current that is supplied to themotor.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents in diagram form my improved system;and Fig. 2 is an enlarged view showing a portion of the conduit with theconductor located therein, the resistances and the switches between thesections, with the switch-operating devices, being also shown in thisfigure. The connection between the trolley-carriage and the car ismodified in this figure from that shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3' is atransverse section through the conduit, showing the conductor, thetrolley carried by the car, the switches between the sections, and theresistances.

For carrying my improved system into practical operation the conductingline-wire L of the railway is divided into a number of sections ofnearly-uniform length. At the ends of the sections are arranged,preferably in man-holes between and below the track, a number ofresistances R, which are connected by the conducting wire L with thecurrent generating dynamo D at the station A, from which the railway isoperated. The current is supplied to the electromotors on the cars inseries by one wire on a double-track road, the wire running along onetrack and returning along the other. In case of asingle track, thereturn-wire is insulated and carried back either underground oroverhead, as desired. The resistances R are in circuit with theconducting-wire, and the sections of the conductor are connected bymeans of switches S, automatically opened b'ya suitable switchopeningdevice 0 on the car, the switches being normally in closed position, soas to cut out the resistances. A contact trolley or brush 7" is arrangedbelow each car C on the arm b, projecting into the conduit from the carand connected with an electromotor M. .The contact-roller r is connectedwith one pole of the motor M, while the other pole of the motor isconnected by a conducting-cable C with a small traveling truck orcontactwagon H at some distance from the car. The cable C is passed overa roller or windingdrum a on the car and can be wound up on the same bythe attendant, the roller being provided with a suitable indicator, soas to indicate the distance of the contact-wagon from the car. Thecontact-wagon H travels in the tunnel, if one is used. The distancebetween the track and the car should cover one section of theconducting-wire at a time for a certain speed; but if a greater speed isrequired the cable connecting the car with the contact-wagon may beelongated, so that the distance of the same from the car is slightlygreater than two lengths of sections of the conducting-wire, by whichmeans two resistances are brought into action and the current suppliedto the motor is doubled. A greater speed can also be obtained byincreasing the resistances between the sections along the road. As thecar passes over the switch, the same is opened by the switch-opener O onthe car, while a switch-closing device it of the contact-wagon willclose the switch again. The switches consist simply of a hub havinginsulated faces and contact-faces, and this hub is provided with pinsextending at the end into the path of the switch-operating parts 0 h. Byopening the switch S a path of less resistance is opened through thecontact-roller on the contact-wagon and over the cable to the motor, andfrom the motor over thereby.

the contact-roller on the car to the conductingwire, as this path offersless resistance than that of the resistance R, and the greater part ofthe current is thereby forced to pass through the motor, so that the caris propelled The current passes then over the return-wire back to thesecond pole of the dynamo at the station. The dynamo is operated in theusual manner by an engine E at the station. The remaining parts of thecurrent which passes through the stationary resistance, and is to someextent wasted, can be utilized by arranging storage-batteries B atcertain points along the road, taking'the place of resistances, whichstorage-batteries may be used forincandescent lighting or powerpurposes. As the car passes from one section of the conducting line-wireto the other it opens the switches one after another between thesections where the resistances are located, and thus compels the currentto seek 1. An electric-railway system composed of a conducting-wiredivided into sections, a stationary resistance at the end of eachsection, a switch between the sections, a car having a contact-roller,an electromotor on said car,

a contact-wagon at some distance from the.

tion of the conducting-wire, a conducting-ca ble for connecting themotor and contactwagon secured to a Winding drum or roller at one end,and devices on the car and contactwagon for opening and closing theswitches as the car and truck pass, respectively, over the same,substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES RICHTER. Witnesses:

B. G. PEoK, FREDK. H. REX. s

